Tooth brush assembly

ABSTRACT

A tooth brush assembly comprising a reservoir disposed within the handle of the toothbrush structured and arranged for retaining up to a 3-month supply of toothpaste therein having a sliding actuator in mechanical communication with a plunger enables a user to push a desired amount of toothpaste through a plurality of apertures disposed around the bristles of the toothbrush head.

COPYRIGHT NOTICE

A portion of the disclosure of this patent document contains material which is subject to copyright protection. The copyright owner has no objection to the facsimile reproduction by anyone of the patent document or the patent disclosure, as it appears in the Patent and Trademark Office patent file or records, but otherwise reserves all copyright rights whatsoever. 37 CFR 1.71(d).

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The following includes information that may be useful in understanding the present invention(s). It is not an admission that any of the information provided herein is prior art, or material, to the presently described or claimed inventions, or that any publication or document that is specifically or implicitly referenced is prior art.

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates generally to the field of toothbrush devices and more specifically relates to a tooth brush assembly comprising a reservoir disposed within the handle of the toothbrush structured and arranged for retaining up to a 3-month supply of toothpaste therein having a sliding actuator in mechanical communication with a plunger enables a user to push a desired amount of toothpaste through a plurality of apertures disposed around the bristles of the toothbrush head.

2. Description of the Related Art

A toothbrush is an oral hygiene instrument used to clean the teeth, gums, and tongue. It consists of a head of tightly clustered bristles mounted on a handle which facilitates the cleaning of hard to reach areas of the mouth. Toothbrushes are available with different bristle textures, sizes, and forms. Most dentists recommend using a soft toothbrush since hard bristled toothbrushes can damage tooth enamel and irritate the gums.

Toothpaste is a paste or gel dentifrice used with a toothbrush as an accessory to clean and maintain the aesthetics and health of teeth. Toothpaste is used to promote oral hygiene: it serves as an abrasive that aids in removing dental plaque and food from the teeth, assists in suppressing halitosis, and delivers active ingredients (most commonly fluoride) to help prevent tooth decay (dental caries) and gum disease (gingivitis). Salt and sodium bicarbonate (baking soda) are among materials that can be substituted for commercial toothpaste. Toothpaste is not intended to be swallowed due to the fluoride content, but is generally not very harmful if accidentally swallowed in small amounts; however, one should seek medical attention after swallowing abnormally large amounts.

Currently there are a number of solutions for a toothpaste dispensing toothbrush. Some of these solutions attempt to combine the two products into one, but these solutions fail to meet the needs of the industry because in one example it is inefficient to unscrew the toothbrush head to dispense toothpaste onto the toothbrush and then screw the toothbrush head back on the device to clean teeth. Other solutions attempt to dispense toothpaste through the bristles of the toothbrush, but these solutions are similarly unable to meet the needs of the industry because there is no level of control present to prevent an excess of toothpaste from being dispensed. Still other solutions seek to contain a replaceable toothpaste dispensing canister that is interested into the bottom of a toothbrush, but these solutions also fail to meet industry needs because of the expense and need for replacing the toothpaste canister.

Ideally, a tooth brush assembly should be user-friendly and safe in-use and yet would operate reliably and be manufactured at a modest expense. Thus, a need exists for a tooth brush assembly comprising a reservoir disposed within the handle of the toothbrush structured and arranged for retaining up to a 3-month supply of toothpaste therein having a sliding actuator in mechanical communication with a plunger enables a user to push a desired amount of toothpaste through a plurality of apertures disposed around the bristles of the toothbrush head and to avoid the above-mentioned problems.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In view of the foregoing disadvantages inherent in the known of toothbrush device art, the present invention provides a novel Tooth Brush Assembly. The general purpose of the present invention, which will be described subsequently in greater detail is to provide a tooth brush assembly comprising a reservoir disposed within the handle of the toothbrush structured and arranged for retaining up to a 3-month supply of toothpaste therein having a sliding actuator in mechanical communication with a plunger enables a user to push a desired amount of toothpaste through a plurality of apertures disposed around the bristles of the toothbrush head.

A tooth brush assembly comprising: an elongated main body; a toothpaste container; a slider member; and a brush head. The elongated main body includes: a proximal end; a distal end having an aperture therethrough and a slot therethrough; and a hollow interior volume. Wherein said hollow interior volume extends between said proximal end and said distal end.

The toothpaste container includes a proximal end; a distal end having an aperture therethrough; an interior volume; and toothpaste. Wherein the toothpaste is stored within the interior volume and is adapted to flow through the distal end aperture. Wherein the toothpaste container is located within the hollow interior volume of the elongated main body.

Wherein the slider member is slidably connected to the elongated main body via the slot and is adapted to push upon the toothpaste container, to thereby push the toothpaste through the distal end aperture thereof and through the distal end aperture of the hollow interior volume.

The brush head includes: a proximal end having an aperture therethrough; a mid-section having an aperture therethrough; a hollow interior volume; a tongue scraper; and a plurality of bristles.

Wherein the hollow interior volume extends between the proximal end and the mid-section. Wherein said tongue scraper is attached to an exterior surface thereof and is adapted to be used to scrape the tongue of a user. Wherein the plurality of bristles are attached and extend from an exterior surface of the mid-section and spaced from the tongue scraper. Wherein the proximal end is connected to the distal end of the elongated main body, such that the aperture of the distal end of the elongated main body aligns with the proximal end of the brush head and the toothpaste of the toothpaste container can pass therethrough and out of the aperture of the mid-section and between the plurality of bristles.

The present invention holds significant improvements and serves as a tooth brush assembly. For purposes of summarizing the invention, certain aspects, advantages, and novel features of the invention have been described herein. It is to be understood that not necessarily all such advantages may be achieved in accordance with any one particular embodiment of the invention. Thus, the invention may be embodied or carried out in a manner that achieves or optimizes one advantage or group of advantages as taught herein without necessarily achieving other advantages as may be taught or suggested herein. The features of the invention which are believed to be novel are particularly pointed out and distinctly claimed in the concluding portion of the specification. These and other features, aspects, and advantages of the present invention will become better understood with reference to the following drawings and detailed description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The figures which accompany the written portion of this specification illustrate embodiments and method(s) of use for the present invention, a Tooth Brush Assembly, constructed and operative according to the teachings of the present invention.

FIG. 1 shows a perspective view illustrating a Tooth Brush Assembly according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating a slider member of the Tooth Brush Assembly according to an embodiment of the present invention of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3A is a perspective view illustrating a timing mechanism of the Tooth Brush Assembly according to an embodiment of the present invention of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3B is a perspective view illustrating the Tooth Brush Assembly according to an embodiment of the present invention of FIG. 1.

The various embodiments of the present invention will hereinafter be described in conjunction with the appended drawings, wherein like designations denote like elements.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

As discussed above, embodiments of the present invention relate to a toothbrush device and more particularly to a tooth brush assembly comprising a reservoir disposed within the handle of the toothbrush structured and arranged for retaining up to a 3-month supply of toothpaste therein having a sliding actuator in mechanical communication with a plunger enables a user to push a desired amount of toothpaste through a plurality of apertures disposed around the bristles of the toothbrush head.

Referring to the drawings by numerals of reference there is shown in FIGS. 1-3, perspective views illustrating tooth brush assembly 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Tooth brush assembly 100 comprises: elongated main body 110; toothpaste container 160; slider member 200; and brush head 180. Elongated main body 110 includes: proximal end 120; distal end 140 having aperture 142 therethrough and slot 146 therethrough; and hollow interior volume 150. Wherein hollow interior volume 150 extends between proximal end 120 and distal end 140. Wherein elongated main body 110 is formed from a translucent material.

Tooth brush assembly 100 further comprising gripping layer 112 attached to an exterior surface of elongated main body 110. Wherein gripping layer 112 includes plurality of dimples 114 thereon. Tooth brush assembly 100 may include electric, non-disposable, and refillable versions.

Toothpaste container 160 includes proximal end 162; distal end 166 having aperture 168 therethrough; interior volume 170; and toothpaste 174. Wherein toothpaste 174 is stored within interior volume 170 and is adapted to flow through aperture 168 on distal end 166. Wherein toothpaste container 160 is located within hollow interior volume 150 of elongated main body 110. Wherein toothpaste 174 within toothpaste container 160 is adapted to last for three months.

Wherein slider member 200 is slidably connected to elongated main body 110 via slot 146 and is adapted to push upon toothpaste container 160, to thereby push toothpaste 174 through aperture 168 on distal end 166 thereof and through the distal end aperture 142 of hollow interior volume 150. Wherein slider member 200 includes plunger member 210 adapted to push upon toothpaste container 160. Wherein slider member 200 further includes button 220 adapted to be pushed by a user's finger 254; and spring 230 connected between button 220 and plunger 210.

Brush head 180 includes: proximal end 182 having aperture 184 therethrough; mid-section 186 having aperture 188 therethrough; hollow interior volume 190; tongue scraper 192; and plurality of bristles 194. Wherein proximal end 182 is connected to distal end 140 of elongated main body 110, such that aperture 142 of distal end 140 of elongated main body 110 aligns with proximal end 182 of brush head 180 and toothpaste 174 of toothpaste container 160 can pass therethrough and out of aperture 188 of mid-section 186 and between plurality of bristles 194. Wherein tongue scraper 192 is formed from silicon rubber.

Tooth brush assembly 100 further comprising timing mechanism 300 connected to proximal end 120 of elongated main body 110 and adapted to a provide a warning signal to user 350 when a predetermined brushing time has elapsed as shown in FIG. 3B. Wherein timing mechanism 300 includes power supply 310; timer 320; and light member 330. Wherein timer 320 and light member 330 are electronically connected to power supply 310. Wherein light member 330 is adapted to send a visual signal when the predetermined brushing time has elapsed. Wherein timing mechanism 300 further includes button 340 thereon adapted to start timer 320. Wherein the elapsed time is set at two minutes, however in future embodiments other times may be set accordingly. Wherein an optional light member 330 is formed as a light emitting diode. Wherein optional light member 330 is adapted to flash when the predetermined brushing time has elapsed as shown in FIG. 3B. A vibration and/or sound such as a ring or a buzz will also be included as options to notify user 350 that the time is up.

The embodiments of the invention described herein are exemplary and numerous modifications, variations and rearrangements can be readily envisioned to achieve substantially equivalent results, all of which are intended to be embraced within the spirit and scope of the invention. Further, the purpose of the foregoing abstract is to enable the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and the public generally, and especially the scientist, engineers and practitioners in the art who are not familiar with patent or legal terms or phraseology, to determine quickly from a cursory inspection the nature and essence of the technical disclosure of the application. 

1. (canceled)
 2. The tooth brush assembly of claim 15, further comprising: a gripping layer attached to exterior surface portions of said body portion.
 3. The tooth brush assembly of claim 2, wherein: said gripping layer includes a plurality of dimples thereon.
 4. The tooth brush assembly of claim 15, wherein: said indicator comprises a timing mechanism.
 5. The tooth brush assembly of claim 4, wherein said timing mechanism comprises: a power supply; a timer; and a light, wherein said timer and said light are electronically connected to said power supply such that said light is adapted to be illuminated so as to send a visual signal when said predetermined brushing time has elapsed.
 6. The tooth brush assembly of claim 5, wherein: said timing mechanism further includes a button thereon which, when depressed, starts said timer.
 7. The tooth brush assembly of claim 6, wherein: said elapsed time is set to be two minutes.
 8. The tooth brush assembly of claim 15, wherein: said toothpaste disposed within said hollow interior portion of said body portion is adapted to last for three months.
 9. The tooth brush assembly of claim 15, wherein: said body portion is fabricated from a translucent material.
 10. The tooth brush assembly of claim 5, wherein: said light comprises a light emitting diode.
 11. The tooth brush assembly of claim 5, wherein: said light is adapted to flash when said predetermined brushing time has elapsed.
 12. The tooth brush assembly of claim 16, wherein: said tongue scraper is fabricated from silicone rubber.
 13. The tooth brush assembly of claim 15, wherein: said actuator comprises a plunger adapted to cause a predetermined amount of toothpaste to be dispensed from said hollow interior portion of said body portion.
 14. The tooth brush assembly of claim 13, wherein: said actuator further includes a button adapted to be depressed by a user's finger; and a spring connected between said button and said plunger for returning said plunger to a non-depressed position.
 15. A disposable tooth brush assembly, comprising: a body portion defining a hollow interior portion, within which a predetermined amount of toothpaste is capable of being stored, after the exhaustion of which, said tooth brush assembly can be discarded, and a handle portion at one end of said body portion; a plurality of bristles mounted upon another end of said body portion opposite said handle portion; a fluid conduit defined within said body portion for fluidically connecting said hollow interior portion, within which the predetermined amount of toothpaste is capable of being stored, with said plurality of bristles so as to permit toothpaste to flow from said hollow interior portion to said plurality of bristles; an actuator for causing a predetermined amount of toothpaste to be dispensed from said hollow interior portion, through said fluid conduit, and onto said plurality of bristles; and an indicator mounted upon said body portion for indicating to the user of said tooth brush assembly that a predetermined amount of brushing time has elapsed whereby the user can be confident that he/she has brushed his/her teeth for a sufficient amount of time.
 16. The tooth brush assembly as set forth in claim 15, further comprising: a tongue scraper. 